A letter from the founder9-minute read

To anyone over 30 who still likes a drink

11 Reasons Drinkers Over 30 Are Ending the Night With a 2‑Ounce Gold Shot, and Getting Their Saturdays Back

It runs long, and that’s deliberate. I would rather you understand what’s in the bottle than just buy it.

Jay, Co-founder·Updated September 2026

Six gold Drinking Buddies Recovery Shot bottles standing together on a deep red backdrop — The 6-pack. Two ounces each, 1,250mg of liquid DHM in every bottle. Most people keep it in the fridge door.

Help your liver

Sleep better

Wake up happier

Dear friend,

If you’re over 30 and you still enjoy a drink, I’d like a few minutes of your time.

I’m going to tell you exactly what is in a little gold bottle, why it’s built the way it is, and why people have started ending their nights with it since we launched in May. I’m also going to tell you what it won’t do, because I would rather lose the sale than have you buy it for the wrong reason.

First, the problem. You already know it, but let me say it plainly.

Somewhere around thirty, the trade gets worse. Two glasses of wine at dinner used to cost you nothing. Now they cost you the 7 a.m. workout, the Saturday plan, the first half of a day you had budgeted for something else.

Most people respond one of two ways. They quit, and quietly hate it. Or they keep drinking and accept that the next day is gone.

I started Drinking Buddies because I wanted a third option to exist. Here are the eleven reasons it works, starting with the one almost nobody in this category will tell you.

A gold Drinking Buddies bottle standing in front of a full glass of beer on a red background — The third option.

1of 11

It’s a liquid, not a capsule. With DHM, that’s most of the story.

The active ingredient is DHM, short for dihydromyricetin. It has one well-known problem: it doesn’t dissolve easily.

That is why almost every DHM product you have seen is a capsule or a powder. It is also why a USC neuropharmacologist who has studied the compound for more than a decade told The New Yorker that in capsule and powder form its bioavailability drops to about five percent, “if you’re lucky.”

Most of what you pay for in a capsule goes right through you.

In the studies that made DHM famous, researchers didn’t use pills. They dissolved the compound into a solution first, and absorption ran between fifty and seventy percent.

Drinking Buddies is that solution. 1,250 milligrams of DHM, already dissolved, in two ounces. Your body isn’t asked to do the hard part.

If you have tried DHM pills and felt nothing, this is probably why. The pill never gave your body a fair shot at it.

A hand holding a two-ounce gold Drinking Buddies bottle against a gold background — Two fluid ounces, about the size of a hotel shampoo bottle. Everything in it is already dissolved.

Liquid DHM, built to absorb. 1,250mg per shot.

2of 11

People have taken this compound after drinking since the year 659. Now USC studies it.

DHM comes from Hovenia dulcis, the Japanese raisin tree. Its seed appears in China’s first official pharmacopoeia, compiled during the Tang Dynasty, and a folk saying credited it with keeping a person steady through “a thousand cups.”

Modern researchers picked it back up because, in animal studies, DHM helped clear alcohol from the body and reduce stress on the liver. The University of Southern California has run a DHM research program for more than ten years.

An old remedy with a current research file is rare in this aisle. Most of what sits next to it is electrolytes with a clever name, and I’ll get to those.

3of 11

The 3 a.m. wake-up is the part you actually feel.

You can’t feel your liver. You can feel waking up at 3 a.m. with your heart going.

Alcohol wrecks the second half of the night. You fall asleep fast and wake at 3 a.m. with your heart going. Drinking Buddies pairs DHM with L-Theanine and Glycine, two amino acids studied for their effects on sleep quality and next-day calm.

The difference between a night out and a night lost usually shows up right here.

CalebiMessage

10/10

Oh hell yeah. It worked?

Feel like I got better sleep than I did all week lol

Customer message, shared with permission

That is a real text from a customer. We asked him if we could show it to you.

I’ll be straight about our numbers, too. About three out of four people who try it tell us they noticed a difference. That is our own customer figure, not a clinical trial, and I won’t dress it up as one.

Save up to 30% + 2 free gifts. Recovery Shots, delivered every three months.

Get up to 30% off

4of 11

It’s formulated as liver support first. The good morning comes with it.

Most “hangover” products are rehydration in a costume. Drinking Buddies is formulated as liver support first. The 1,250mg dose of DHM is there to:

Support the liver’s natural metabolism of alcohol
Help the liver manage the oxidative stress that follows a night of drinking
Support healthy liver function for the long haul, well beyond tomorrow morning

You’ll feel the difference in the morning. Your liver will feel it at forty-five.

A Drinking Buddies bottle on a kitchen counter the morning after, beside an empty pizza box and a coffee maker — 7:05 a.m. Last night’s pizza box, this morning’s coffee. This is the moment the whole product is built around.

Clinically Backed IngredientsAdvanced Liver SupportEvery Dose Printed

5of 11

You take it after your last drink. Nothing to plan, nothing to count.

Pre-drink probiotics have to go in before the first sip, which means remembering at six o’clock what you’ll want at midnight. Capsule brands want a specific count at a specific moment.

Drinking Buddies is the new nightcap. You take it after your last drink and go to bed.

And if you forget? Take it when you remember. Plenty of customers take theirs with their coffee. It fits in a jacket pocket, a clutch, or the door of the fridge, which is where it tends to live.

A man sitting up in bed at night, drinking a Drinking Buddies Recovery Shot — The version of DHM that works is the one you’ll actually take.

6of 11

Every ingredient in the bottle has a job to do.

DHM does the heavy lifting, but a night of drinking asks several things of your body at once. So each shot carries the stack below, and every part of it has a job.

What’s in the two ounces

DHM (Dihydromyricetin)1,250mgLiquid and pre-dissolved. Supports the liver’s metabolism of alcohol.
Glycine3,000mgThe largest active in the bottle. Supports deeper, more restorative sleep.
N-Acetyl L-Cysteine650mgSupports glutathione production, which helps clear alcohol’s byproducts.
Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin625mgThe delivery molecule. It is what keeps the DHM in solution.
L-Theanine450mgCalm without drowsiness.
Milk Thistle (seed)60mgThe classic liver botanical.
Ginger (root)40mgFor the stomach.
Vitamins B6 & B121.7mg · 10.63mcgReplenish what a night out depletes. B12 at 443% of the daily value.
Electrolytes137mg sodium · 200mg potassiumReplace what you lose overnight.

Full supplement facts and directions appear on the product page. Talk to your doctor before use if you take medication or have a medical condition.

7of 11

Why two ounces of this beats a sixteen-ounce electrolyte drink.

I’ll be blunt about the competition, because you’re going to compare anyway. The category is crowded and most of it looks the same on the shelf. The honest way to read it is to ask one question of each product: how much DHM is in it, and can your body actually absorb it?

What’s actually best for long-term liver health?
	Drinking Buddies	Electrolyte drinks	DHM capsules	Pre-drink probiotic
DHM per serving	1,250mg, liquid	0mg	Varies; capsule form	0mg
Absorption	Pre-dissolved	n/a	~5% in capsule or powder form, per one USC researcher	n/a
Liver support	Yes, formulated for it	No	Partial	No
When you take it	After your last drink (or when you remember)	Morning after	Timed count after drinking	Must be before your first drink
Sleep support	L-Theanine + Glycine	No	Rarely	No
Serving size	2 oz	12–16 oz, often sugary	2–4 pills	0.5 oz

A hand holding two red cups of water and a Drinking Buddies bottle at night — Drink the water too, then take the shot. Water rehydrates you. It does not help your liver process alcohol.

8of 11

People who switched from the “pre-drink shot” keep telling us the same thing.

We don’t run attack ads against other brands. We don’t have to. Customers who tried the little probiotic shot first tend to send us messages like this one, unprompted.

KristiniMessage

Thanks so much for the Drinking Buddies! Used it for the first time last night after being a little overserved during the game and woke up feeling great.

I think you have a serious edge on the pre-drink probiotic stuff.

Customer message, shared with permission

9of 11

It’s made for people who still drink.

There is an entire industry built on making you feel bad about Thursday’s martini. We are not in it.

Read through our best customer stories and they all have the same shape. Nobody says drinking is bad. They say the next day was the problem, and they got tired of paying for it. Nobody should have to pick between Friday night and Saturday morning. For a long time that was the only deal going.

It’s not really a three-day weekend if you give up on Sunday morning, is it?

“I wanted to be healthier. I tried not drinking for a while. The truth was, I hated it.”
From one of our customer videos

A Drinking Buddies bottle standing on a bar between two pints of beer — It goes wherever the drinks are.

Drinking Buddies is for you if

You still drink socially, and you’ve noticed it costs more than it used to
You have a morning that matters: a workout, kids up at seven, a tee time, a job
You read ingredient labels and want the dose, not the vibe
You tried DHM pills or the pre-drink shot and weren’t convinced

It is not for you if

You want permission to drink more. It won’t make you less drunk or lower your blood alcohol. Never drive after drinking.
You are under 21, pregnant, or nursing
You take medication or have a liver condition and haven’t talked to your doctor

10of 11

Up to 30% off, plus 2 free gifts. Here’s why I can afford to do that.

We launched in May. I would rather spend our money putting the first six-pack in your fridge than putting another ad in your feed. If it works for you, you’ll keep it coming. We are counting on that.

So the offer is simple. Have your shots delivered every three months, save up to 30%, and get 2 free gifts.

11of 11

If it doesn’t earn a place in your fridge, you get your money back.

You have read a lot of claims by now, mine included. The only one that matters is the one you can check yourself, on a Saturday morning, with your own body.

So the guarantee is simple. Try it after your next night out. If you don’t notice the difference within 90 days, email us and we’ll refund you. No form, no argument, no “return the unused portion.”

A Drinking Buddies bottle lying on white bedsheets next to a bottle of water — Saturday morning. Last night’s shot, this morning’s water, and a full day still on the table.

90-Day Money-Back Guarantee

If it isn’t for you, you don’t pay for it.

Here is exactly what to do

Tap the button below.
Pick your shots on the next page. The savings and your 2 free gifts are shown there.
When it arrives, put it in the fridge door. Take one after your last drink this weekend, and see what Saturday feels like.

That’s all I have. The link is right below.

Stay beautiful,

Jay

Co-founder, Drinking Buddies

P.S. If you remember one thing from this letter, make it this: DHM in a pill is about five percent absorbed. DHM in this bottle is already dissolved. That one difference is why people who gave up on the pills stick with this.

P.P.S. Up to 30% off, plus 2 free gifts. That’s the offer on the next page.

P.P.P.S. Ninety days. If it doesn’t work for you, email us and we’ll refund you.

A single Drinking Buddies Recovery Shot bottle lit on a gold backdrop

Get my Recovery Shots, up to 30% off

2 free gifts · 90-day money-back guarantee · 21+ only

Questions people ask before their first order

When exactly do I take it?

After your last drink of the night is the sweet spot. If you forget, take it when you remember, including the next morning. One shot is one serving.

Will it make me less drunk, or safe to drive?

No. Drinking Buddies does not reduce intoxication or blood alcohol content. It supports your liver and your next morning. Never drive after drinking.

How is this different from the DHM pills I’ve seen?

Same compound, different delivery. DHM dissolves poorly, so in capsule or powder form very little of it is absorbed. Drinking Buddies is DHM already in solution, 1,250mg per two-ounce shot, so absorption isn’t left to chance.

Is this a subscription?

Yes. Your shots ship every three months, which is how the price comes down by up to 30%. The plan details, including how to change it, are on the next page.

How many do I need?

One per night you drink. Count your nights out in a typical month and you’ll have a good idea.

What if it doesn’t work for me?

Email us within 30 days of your order and we’ll refund you. Individual results vary, and we would rather you try it with nothing at stake.